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Topic: Selling Collections (Read 7166 times)

I have thought about selling off some of my Star Wars stuff; 12 inch, vehciles, and some of my extras that I have. I have also sold some of my Simpsons stuff. The only thing holding me back from selling this stuff is not getting the money I spent on it back. Eventually I will probally get rid of all of those thing either through Ebay or Fourms but alot of times people stiff me at sites.

I was reading through some older threads here this afternoon and found this one. It is funny how many of us were talking about selling things off/space issues/etc. four years ago, and many (like myself) are still talking about it now. How many of you have gone through with cutting back, packing away, or selling off parts of your collections? Judging from the classifieds around here the past couple years, it seems like there have been more and more of us paring things down. I don't know if it has to do with the crazy pace of releases the past 3-4 years, or just the fact that 10+ years of collecting this stuff just adds up a lot.

I'm in a similar place as back then. Unfortunately, I was stupid enough to collect other lines outside of Star Wars (the largest of which has been Marvel and DC stuff), so that isn't helping matters any as far as budget and/or space issues go. I think Scott mentioned in an older post that his wife would be happy if he sold stuff, and I'm in a similar boat now. My wife would really like it if I got rid/sold off some of my collection at this point. I think the tipping point is when I asked if I could display some Unleashed statues in our basement family room (the rest of the collection is in our office). When it starts spilling out of here, I have too much stuff (she says/I agree). I'm still at a crossroads at what to do. There is so much that I really like to collect, but it is just taking up so much room (and I'm realizing what the money could better go towards in a number of cases). I'll probably always collect the SW basic line in some capacity (as well as comic-based figures here and there, Marvel and DC), but I've given thoughts to going OT only (or mostly) - but just haven't gone through with it. I've given more serious thought to giving up non-OT vehicles, which seem to take up the most space for me personally. Problem is, I'd really like to pick up some of the PT stuff (like the AT-TE), but right now I just don't have room for it.

Anyways, I haven't gotten around to selling anything really (except a few extras here and there), but there's a part of me that is envious of those who can and do. The money (even if its less than originally paid in many cases) would be nice, as well as the extra room - and I know it would make the Mrs. happy as well. Anyone else gone through with selling/cutting back plans, or are still considering it? Its always nice to hear people's opinions and choices, since none of my friends really collect stuff in this capacity (instead focusing on other "hobbies"). I don't think you really understand unless you do collect, in some respects anyways.

My suggestion to you, Brian, is to just slim down what you collect and sell what you might've bought to be "complete" or because it was "HTF" or "everyone else was buying it." What I did back in 2006 was give myself a limit on what I could buy; 2005 figures onward. A big step towards making space was slimming down my army some. I got into the whole Skittle Clone thing... had about 9 of each color, 18 501st, Camo, 18 Utapau, etc. I then realized I bought a lot of those because the guys online got them or to be complete. I've now sold all of my troopers that are not based on an Evolutions sculpt. My exception is the BattleFront II sets and Clone Wars.

I think one of the biggest money/space eaters as well as hard urges to beak is wanting to be complete. I had all 60 TAC figures last year. I probably bought about 40 or so for the coins only. Sold 'em and haven't looked back. I also used to own complete collections of Saga 2 and ROTS. I realized it was kinda useless and sold all but my favorite figures from each line. (Actually, I'm not sure if I even own any TSC)I'm not sure how you collect, but if you're a completist, you gotta kick that thing. It's nicer to have your own complete collection rather than Hasbro's complete collection.

Regarding the collecting of other items, that could be bad. I'm not saying you cannot buy anything other than Star Wars, but you should really be careful. Think about what your biggest love is, and collect those toys. For the other stuff, pick like 5 favorite figures or five favorites per company. Rotate them on display by your computer or something like that. I've found that trying to balance two lines breaks the bank, but getting a couple of Neca figures a year just spices up my desktop.

From reading your post, I get the feeling that you buy just to buy at this point. You seem to like everything. No offense meant, but I think you need to draw a line at what you can/can't have. Believe me, there are about five other lines that beg for me to collect them (Joes, IJ, Dark Night, Legos) but if I did I'd be broke as a mother ******. Over the past year or so I've been working to make my collection MY collection. I'm not buying just cuz someone else has it. If I do, I stick that item on my classifieds list and chalk it up as a mistake. I love the natives of Star Wars. I have 20 Wookiees. I own three Jungle Rancors. 15 Nemoidians. I'd like to think that these things that I enjoy really set my collection apart. Does anyone on here have three of those big ass Rancors? By slimming my collection down I've been able to add some really cool pieces and root out even more stuff that was bought for the hell of it. (I replaced my Y-Wing with two B-Wings... couldn't be happier)

If you'd like, I'd be happy to offer some more tips on how you could selectively feed your addictions but have more space, cooler stuff, etc. This is if you'd like someone else's opinion, of course.

Regarding the collecting of other items, that could be bad. I'm not saying you cannot buy anything other than Star Wars, but you should really be careful. Think about what your biggest love is, and collect those toys. For the other stuff, pick like 5 favorite figures or five favorites per company. Rotate them on display by your computer or something like that.

Pretty hard to do my friend when you were a hardcore fan of SW, Joes, and TF as a child of the 80's. Money is getting tight now on the collecting front no thanks to the Joe resurrection. I'm just glad I didn't feel impelled to go back in time and collect everything vintage as I did with TF's. Saved me a few bucks. I picked up some lame collections over the years that were not needed like Ren & Stimpy, Invader Zim, Fairly Odd Parents, Hellboy, etc. that I will sell off.

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Pretty hard to do my friend when you were a hardcore fan of SW, Joes, and TF as a child of the 80's. Money is getting tight now on the collecting front no thanks to the Joe resurrection. I'm just glad I didn't feel impelled to go back in time and collect everything vintage as I did with TF's. Saved me a few bucks. I picked up some lame collections over the years that were not needed like Ren & Stimpy, Invader Zim, Fairly Odd Parents, Hellboy, etc. that I will sell off.

So true. The nostalgia is what sucks me into things like Joes, MOTU, and to a lesser extent, Transformers. If budget and space were unlimited, I'd probably get a little more of that stuff. Thanks for the advice too Greg, I do appreciate it. I'm not a completist in any sense of the word really, although I will admit that the last couple years has been a bit closer to it than usual. I too got sucked into a few figures I would have normally passed on for the coins last year, and this new Build A Droid concept is doing much the same. I'd probably pass on the majority of Wave 3 in the TLC collection if it weren't for wanting the BaD. I'll take my time on that wave though and see how it goes.

I think more the problem for me, like many, is the accumulation of stuff after collecting for 10 years (or for some, more). I didn't get back in the collecting game right away with the POTF2 release, but kind of trickled back in slowly. I picked up the "big names" from POTF2 loose, and had a nice little shelf in our computer desk with Star Wars figures. Then it became two shelves. Then the Falcon...and an X-Wing...and so on. I think a lot of us have similar stories about things slowly piling in, and who knew we would be buying figures of Dice Ibegon and Wioslea all these years later. Heck, many of us were just happy to get figures of ones that should have been in the vintage line (Tarking, Stormie Han, Slave Leia, etc.)

Collecting additional lines doesn't help matters any, and I know that. Star Wars takes up enough space (and budget) the way it is. I've gotten a little better at staying away from some temptations (in the past like Muppets, Simpsons, etc.) - and sticking to things that I've had an interest in since my childhood (SW, Marvel, Indy, DC, Joes, and maybe later MOTU). The only exception to this now is one shelf of LOTR figures, which although I was tempted at the time to get more, I'm quite happy with the 9 that I have. Of course, all said, it would probably be simpler if I just passed on all the "other" stuff and focused in on SW and maybe one or two other favorites (like Spidey in particular). The "build-a" concept has made a sucker out of me in some instances though. Although all the figures are well done, I don't need to own every DCUC figure so far (through three waves), but I do. I originally had a plan of getting the Batman "world" of characters, and then the big names from the JLA/DCU (and maybe one main baddie from each). Then I wanted figures like Grodd and Grundy, and I end up owning things like Superman Blue and Etrigan. They are nice figures, but I probably didn't really need them. I think I might try going forward to focus in again on just the main characters in that line, and if I have to focus it further - finishing out my favorites would be enough too (Flash, Green Arrow, etc.)

Anyways, sorry for another long post, but its nice to see some other perspectives on this stuff. It seems like a crossroads a lot of us are coming to (or have already gotten to) within the past few years - be it a combination of many years of collecting, many lines to collect, or just the fact that there really hasn't ever been so much product (and good product at that) out there for collectors as there is now. I mean, this isn't even touching on all the well made high end stuff out there these days. Its a great time to be a collector, and yet it isn't...with budget, time, and space constraints factoring in. Its probably good to reflect every once in awhile on the "why" of collecting, and I know its a question I ask myself every so often. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy what I collect - but when it comes down to it, it really is just a pile of plastic - and I have to remind myself that. I don't need the AT-TE, I just want it, and there's a difference there. Anyways, thanks for the comments, I look forward to reading other people's thoughts and solutions to their own collecting troubles and/or crossroads. Its always nice to see you're not alone in thinking about what you can cut back on, cut out, etc.

It's good to hear I'm not the only one who's at the same crossroads with their collection...

Let me relay a story to all of you...There was this girl I worked with that used to smoke, had been for about 14 years -- smoked a pack a day. One day she came back from one of her normal smoke breaks and told me "that's my last cigarette; I just quit." A couple weeks later she hadn't gone back to smoking, and a few months later she still had not had another cigarette. Not being a smoker, and hearing how hard it is to quit, I asked her how she was able to do so, so easily. She told me, "I added up all the money I had been spending on cigarettes over the last year; when I saw the total and carried that out over 14 years, I got so pissed off at myself and the cigarette makers that I just decided I had had enough. No more!"

Well, I had this same epiphany about my SW collection around May-June of this year (during the lull of Hasbro product). I started looking at all the SW items (Hasbro & non-Hasbro) I've purchased and held onto for the past 13 years (!!!), thought about the SW items I've purchased and ultimately sold over the past 13 years; added/estimated the total of all those purchases and just got mad. Mad at myself -- for buying figures that today I couldn't even tell you the name of the character -- and mad at Hasbro for overwhelming the market. I'm not blaming Hasbro for my own inability to control my purchases, but it just wasn't fun anymore. I'm liquidating roughly 85% to 90% of my collection, save for the first 9 POTF2 figures (sentimental), the Fans' Choice figures, the McQuarrie figures, and 2-3 representative figures from each line (POTF2, SOTE, EU, EpI, POTJ, SAGA, CW, CWAnimated, OTC, Vintage, POTC, ROTS, TSC, TAC). This alone will still leave me with close to 100 figures.

This is not the first time I've sold a huge chunk of my collection, but this is the first time that it's hitting nearly every segment of my collection. In the past it would be "I'm selling all my 12" figures" or "I'm selling all my Unleashed figures" or "I'm selling all the army-builder figures" or "I'm selling all my non-Star Wars figures" ... you get the picture.

I have not purchased any of the Legacy Collection or Clone Wars figures, nor felt any compulsion to. I went to the Midnight Madness on July 26, looked at the new figures and just walked away. I have been hardcore for 13 years then just decided "No more!" I'm taking a huge loss on the figures I'm selling, but having never been a believer of collect-to-profit and expecting to be extremely lucky to get even 50% of my money back, I'll be okay with that.

I anticipate about 2 months to move everything.Loose figures firstMulti-packs secondVehicles/Beasts/Acc. thirdMOC figures fourth (biggest chunk of my collection)Misc. crap last...whatever is left or did not sell, I'll probably just donate.

I'm not completely out of the game. I still love the OT films; I still have all my 1977-1985 figures; and I will still continue to post very infrequently. I buy LEGO, the GG animated maquettes, OT Acme Keys, and OT or Clonetrooper Mighty Muggs now, and that is all -- lines that are infrequent enough to not overwhelm me, but still frequent enough to keep me anticipating. Hopefully now I can stay a consumer who collects to enjoy, and not just one who collects to collect.

...and I do believe this is my longest post ever in the history of the internets.

Sorry to derail, but here goes... Are you going to be selling through the forums Bamaker? There's a good chance I'd be interested in acquiring a MOC/MIB collection of Clone Wars 2003 stuff (Hopefully the whole run) along with several other select figures from other lines. If/when you start selling, please keep me in mind there. I'd love to take a bunch of stuff off your hands.

I started off as a loose collector, then switched to one open/one carded. That even ballooned into one open/one boxed for cinema scenes, battlepacks, etc. Now that I am finally to a point where I have a large room to display everything, I have been looking at the boxed battlepacks and the like and think how can I really display all of that. I have considered trying to sell off the extras, but like many, I doubt that I will even be able to get the retail prices that I paid for the items.

With Sideshow taking over the 12" line, I keep looking at my boxed 12" Hasbro figures I wonder if I really need both. Sadly, it is hard to get $10 for a figure that cost $20 ten years ago.

Ebay has made things worse with all the anti-seller regulations (unless you are a "powerseller").

I think I may just attempt to sell stuff at cost and then barring that, keep items for my son so he has stuff to play with and is not tempted by Daddy's stuff.

This topic has come to mind for me again lately, as I've gotten some bad news regarding work going into 2009. As I was already planning, I'm definitely going to have to cut back on collecting (or maybe nearly altogether) for the next year - and I'm also considering putting some stuff up for sale. As some others have mentioned, I'm sort of worried that I will regret selling stuff later on. At the same time, I'm really excited for what is on the way in the SW line next year (with all the OT stuff), so I'm considering selling stuff that I don't necessarily need to try to fund any new purchases. Honestly, that's probably what I should have been doing in the first place - because there is a lot of stuff that's just packed away, that I bought extras of I didn't necessarily need, or figures that I know next to nothing about character-wise that I probably don't need either. Anyways, its nice reading other people's experiences and thoughts about cutting back and selling stuff off. Its tough to think about parting with a lot of stuff, but at the same time, I guess it is just "toys" when it comes down to it. I'm going to spend some time going through the collection and seeing what I could sell (what people would be interested in buying) so I can hopefully fund some of the nifty stuff next year.

He did it because he was out of space. And the bottom line is that he didn't want to - I got the impression that he was regretting it as we sat at his dining room table picking through the stuff. I hope it worked out well for him, but I knew right then that I couldn't do it.

Holy crap how things change after 4 years. I'm enjoying the hell out of selling my stuff, even though I still like the parts of the collection that I'm hanging onto.

I was reading through this thread again, as I've been (slowly) selling off portions of my collection. I find myself digging a little bit deeper into the collection with each round of sales, but it gets a little bit tougher each time. At the same time, it does feel a little bit liberating as well. As I mentioned earlier, I got laid off from my job of 10 years at the beginning of this year - and the situation has sort of worked itself out to where I'm working part time from home and staying home with our daughter. Long story short, the budget is extremely trimmed and I've been looking to sell stuff as well to bring in extra money. Sometimes it is tough to part with things, but at the same time it does sort of feel like the right thing to do now. I still enjoy collecting, and will continue to collect some things - but I started to realize I don't need so much of this stuff. I started to pick up some of the new Star Trek stuff (Kirk/Spock), likely purely out of hype, and then ended up taking them back to the store wondering why I even needed them. I don't have the room, nor the budget, so I'm working on sticking to what I really enjoy.

It is funny how it all seems to balloon out of control. I started with POTF2 figures (back when there was only 12-24 a year), and now I have a room filled with everything from Star Wars to Joes to Indy to Spidey/Marvel to DC to Lord of the Rings to Transformers, etc. I've never bought anything from a property I didn't enjoy, but I start to think now do I really "need the stuff" to enjoy it? I'm on the fence right now with the Clone Wars animated stuff. I really like the show, but do I really need the figures? I've bought quite a few of them, but I'm wondering if I should continue.

How many of us ended up selling the stuff we were talking about on Page 1/2 of this thread? If so, do you regret it? I've noticed that quite a few of us have slowed down/cut back, or in some cases totally stopped or switched interests (higher end, other properties, etc.). I wonder if it is a sign of the times, the fact that there is just so much stuff at this point, or maybe it is an age thing.

I also thought this quote from Brent was timely, since the "collector market" has been struggling (or at least we're being told it is), and I can sort of see something like this happening:

Quote

Something I see happening, whether it's Star Wars, McFarlane or otherwise is that the market is saturated. So very much to buy, all of it competing for $$$. Too many chase figures and too much of the stuff on store shelves being bought solely to resell. That's hard on collectors as a whole. Scott for example has all of his stuff loose that I've seen. Why should he struggle to get a clear Vision or chase Phoenix? They certainly aren't worth $50+ and he'll immediately kill most of the value by opening them. No, this is looking to me to be a whole lot like the card and comic scene of the late 80's/early 90's when the bottom fell out. Oh sure, new hot stuff will always come along and the market may regenerate itself, but it feels ready for a collapse.

I was looking for another thread, I think it was titled something like "The Space Issue" or something similar, but stumbled on this thread instead. To make a long story short, I've finally reached the point where I'm running out of space for my modern collection and need to expand my shelving/display room, and the only way to do this is to sell off all of my old childhood toys. This is stuff from the 90's, like Power Rangers, Hot Wheels, Toy Biz X-Men/Spider-Man Animated Series, Batman: TAS, wrestling, etc.

These are all in large Rubbermaid bins in my closet and I'm at the point where I just want to get rid of them. I want to make SOMETHING off of them (I know I won't get much) so that leaves out the Goodwill/donation aspect, but I'd also like to avoid eBay. I've used eBay maybe twice, each time only making purchases, so my lack of feedback would turn people off. Plus I feel like if I just listed the lot of toys for a $20 starting bid the auctions would just sit there. Plus there's the whole issue with all of the toys being in played-with condition and accessories being all over the place. I don't really have the time to sort through everything and research which pieces go with which figure. Then again I think about all of the above and just want to say "forget it" and donate it all anyway.

I guess what I want to ask is for those of you who sold stuff, how did you go about doing it and how much success did you have? Is it a relatively painless process in terms of making deals and shipping things out? Just trying to figure out how to get into the selling "business" and what to expect.

You'd probably make more money claiming the charitable deduction on your taxes after giving them away then you will selling them. Plus it's much less hassle. I've never found an "easy" way to sell worthless toys, other than dumping them on a dealer.